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words cz"ie like a dish of fresli cold
water in Eleanor's face.
She awoke out of her spell and
smiled at the Tempter.
"Tomorrow night's all right," she
said. '.'But I gotta get home now,
you're right. Need my beauty -sleep.
Let's beat it for the house."
"Ta ta, kiddo," said the Tempter
as he left her at the steps without
offering to kiss her good night: "see
you in" the store in the morning."
That was the first of many times
they were together. The' Tempter
was a good spender for a chap with
little money, and, though he was not
in the taxicab class, they went ta
amusement parks and on steamer
rides and to vaudeville and moving
picture shows, and Eleanor was
much hugged and kissed, and liked it
and fell in love with the Tempter,
who never in all that time said to
her a word which was wrong, though
he did say plenty that were foolish.
Until
"Kiddo," said the Tempter after a
month of this, "I'm getting tired of
bein' a good fellow for nothin'. All
my roll has gone on you, and what
do I get out of it? A few kisses and
a hug or two and the chance to stick
around with you for a few hours
now and then. It ain't enough. I'm
through, unless " -
"Unless wh-what?" trembled Elea
nor. She had forgotten, m the weeks
that had passed, all about Tempta
tion. She loved the -Tempter and had
come to trust him, and now the
castles which she had built were
crumbling about" her.
"Unless," the Tempter was say
ing, "unless you'll be sensible. Eve
got a bully little flat all fixed up. Me
and, another fellow have been livin'
in it, but he s got married now. We
.can be mighty quiet about it so the
boss won't get wise and fire us. Aft
er a while I got another job comin'
up where they aren't sopafticular."
"So you want me to come and live
in'the flat instead of him?" Eleanor
said, lier mouth quivering.
"Sure, but I don't see why you're
so sad about it. We'll have a great
time. What do you suppose I've been
rushin' you all this while for, just to
spend my money?" the Tempter ask
ed with a grin an evil grin, Eleanor
thought.
"I I didn't know," she faltered,
"I thought maybe you you wanted
to m-m-marry me."
"Marry you!" shoutedthe Tempt
er, who wasn't a Tempter at all, "of
course I want to marry you. What do
you think I'm trying to do, hire a
housekeeper?"
"I I thought" J
He had a sudden thought.
"Girlie," he said, "would you have
come without any wedding?"
"I I oh, you'll hate me if I tell
you," she cried.
"Little girl," he said, and his voice
was very tender, "I see that you
Would. Some guys might be sore, but
it makes me happy to know you think
enough of me so you'd come anyhow.
That means some love, girlie, and I
know it. But you're going to come all
proper and right"
Eleanor nodded.
"Billy," she asked, "what was the
row you had with the landlady?"
"Why, I took one of the boys out
with me one night from there and
he got drunk. It wasfi't anything
really my fault, girlie.
"And while I'm at it let me put you
wise to something. This city ain't so
bad as a good many of these story r
writers paint it. Most of us guys "
come from little towns like yours,
and we don't change an awful lot.
There's plenty of bad ones here, but
the most of the city push is fellows
that works hard and goes to bed
early and finds a girl and gets mar
ried. Shall I 'cop the license tomor
row?"
"Sure," said' Eleanor.
(The End.)
o o
There are more than 60,000 dark
windowless rooms in New York city
alone. Eug'enists please note.
'fll
i
